RThomas-
03-18-2013, 05:03 PM
Hello, I'm RT and I played Legacy at SCG Washington DC this weekend. I decided to write a report about my experience because I haven't played a major tournament in about 7 years, and I enjoy writing about Magic. Playing cards isn't so much a game as an experience to me; meeting new people and observing how they operate in a tournament environment is fun and interesting, and I hope to play in many more tournaments in the future. Also, I see there are very few reports posted and I hope more people will write about their experiences as well.
I played Manaless Dredge with Balustrade Spy. Here is my list:
4 Golgari Grave-Troll
4 Stinkweed Imp
4 Golgari Thug
4 Shambling Shell
4 Nether Shadow
4 Ichorid
4 Narcomoeba
4 Bridge from Below
4 Phantasmagorian
4 Street Wraith
4 Gitaxian Probe
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Chancellor of the Annex
4 Dread Return
3 Balustrade Spy
1 Flayer of the Hatebound
1 Darksteel Colossus
4 Faerie Macabre
3 Unmask
3 Mindbreak Trap
2 Sickening Shoal
1 Griselbrand
1 Chancellor of the Forge
1 Angel of Despair
There should have been a Blightsteel Colossus instead of Darksteel Colossus in the maindeck, but I failed to acquire one before the tournament. Too bad.
I tried different cards in the sideboard and didn't know what would be best when the tournament began. So I tried a little bit of everything. The weakest card was Unmask, which probably lost me a match early on. Later on I'll experiment with some different things. You can look over on to the thread in Established Decks to investigate the discussion.
I played in the Legacy challenge on Saturday night and went 3-1. I won against Slivers, lost against Dream Halls-Omniscience, and then won against Sneak & Show and Death & Taxes. There was not one gravehate card cast against me in those matches.
Sunday:
Round 1 against Tin Fins: 2-1
Game 1: On the draw, but lost turn 1.
Game 2: Sided in the Faeries, Unmask, Mindbreak Trap. I had Trap in the opening hand, but my vs. played two Duress and two Cabal Therapy to slow me down. I did not dredge for several turns. The turn before he was ready to combo, he Therapied a Faerie away but I drew one off the top. He tried to combo the next turn but the Faerie nixed it. I was able to get to 8 and begin dredging. Nether Shadow was Extracted later on, but I dredged enough Ichorid to get there.
Game 3: I don't have many notes for this game since I didn't cast Therapy early. I played Unmask early on and took a Shallow Grave. He didn't have the other combo parts and never drew them. I beat with Nether Shadow for a while, Bridge was Extracted, but eventually Ichorid showed up and I played Therapy to seal it.
The second and third games went quite long, nearly to time. I credit this to the "resilience" of this deck: when the game goes long, the deck does not get weaker, especially when mass grave removal does not appear. I recovered from setbacks extremely well both post-side games. I had played against this opponent in past tournaments, so he knew what to expect, which made it a bit more difficult.
Round 2 against Elf Combo: 0-2
Game 1: I only had Shambling Shell in the opener so I was very slow to start. On the third turn my vs. went for the combo, but he made errors and was forced to pass the turn. By that time I had some Ichorids and Shadows in the grave and brought them back to attack. My opponent erred by blocking with Elvish Visionaries and returning them to hand with Wirewood Symbiote, all while I had Therapy in the grave. They were binned in the postcombat phase. Unfortunately, I was ready to reanimate Spy but he was not in the graveyard. My vs. had extra Visionaries in the field of play and drew into Craterhoof Behemoth the next turn.
Game 2: I had Annex Chancellor in the opening hand and my vs. ran Deathrite Shaman right into it. Yikes. Then he had turn 2 Bojuka Bog to hit my discarded Phantasmagorian, and then drew into Scavenging Ooze. I could not find Sickening Shoal.
My opponent seemed new to this deck, which might be why I saw him sitting next to me in round 6. Nice guy, he just seemed a bit lost. I wonder if more Contagion would have helped in this match.
Round 3 against UR Delver: 2-0
Game 1: My opponent had a quick Delver and played Lavamancer later on. I had a quick start with Grave-Troll dredging second turn along with Probe to see his hand. I Therapied and took away Lightning Bolt and Snapcaster Mage. He put me down to 13, but I was able to reanimate Spy on my fifth turn and killed him.
Game 2: I sided in Sickening Shoals but never saw them. He played Delver turn 1 and Goblin Guide turn 2. He hit me down to 7 but I had another quick start with Phantasmagorian, dredgers, and Street Wraith. I made a lot of Nether Shadows and zombies and beat him down for the win around turn 4.
Unfortunately for him, his Extractions were cut down to the bottom of the deck. He said he left work at 5am in Richmond and drove to DC for this tournament. Please, don't do unsafe things like this. No tournament is worth the peril you put yourself in when you're driving tired. He was a nice guy though and I hope to play more people like this.
Round 4 against Ad Nauseum: 1-2
Game 1: Unfortunately, I was hit with Tendrils on turn 2. Even Annex Chancellor couldn't stop him.
Game 2: I sided in Trap, Unmask, and Faerie Macabre. Annex Chancellor Dazed a Lotus Petal, he Duressed a Trap, and then I discarded Phantasmagorian. He tried to combo turn 3 after I dredged Shambling Shell, but his Cabal Ritual was met with Faerie, which took him away from threshold. He was dead in the water after that and I returned a bunch of Ichorid and zombies for lethal.
Game 3: He mulliganed and I played Unmask on turn 1 to see land, Duress, Petal, Ponder, Ad Nauseum. I took the Duress because I had Trap in hand, but that was a mistake since he Pondered into Therapy and Duress. It wasn't hard for him after that since Unmask and discard spells kept me from discarding a dredger.
This round, along with other areas, makes me question Unmask. I found that there wasn't really a matchup where I felt comfortable boarding it in. Obviously I need it if I want a chance against Grafdigger's Cage and Rest in Peace, but it seems like those cards are played in blue decks, where Unmask can just be countered and I'm out of luck anyway. We'll have to search for another solution.
Round 5 against RUG Delver: 1-2
Game 1: I was on the play. A turn 1 Delver came out and beat me down to 9, when another Delver and Tarmogoyf came out. I had Thug to dredge but didn't hit anything relevant. I played Probe, then Therapy and took away Snapcaster Mage. I brought back two Shadows, but I couldn't find enough Narcomoebas or a Dread Return and I lost
Game 2: There was another turn 1 Delver when I was on the draw, I didn't have Annex Chancellor. I played Probe turn 1 and saw Brainstorms, Daze, and a Snap Mage. Turn 2 I dredged into Narcomoeba and Therapy. He played Brainstorm in response to Therapy and I nabbed a Daze, thinking I could reanimate a Spy in a turn or two. Luckily, he didn't play anything of relevance and I was able to do so.
Game 3: He found his one Scavenging Ooze in his opening hand and I had a slow hand. A losing game to be sure.
I pride myself on hiding my deck while shuffling if my opponent hasn't seen me playing it. For all that I did though, my opponent spied a flash of Dread Return and something else in pre-match shuffle and said something to the effect of, "So you're playing Manaless Dredge? I'll put you on the play." "Oh, you saw me playing earlier?" "No, I just saw a card while you were shuffling." This seemed to me rather unsporting, but I suppose it's my fault for not shuffling before I got to the table. I thought he could have at least played it off like he saw me playing earlier, but at least he was honest. At least he was a nice guy and revealed what he was playing when I called him on it. Lesson learned.
Round 6 against Vial Goblins: 2-0
Game 1: My vs. went on the play and started with Vial. I had a fast hand with Phantasmagorian and Street Wraith, making some Shadows and zombies early on. Apparently, my opponent didn't know what he was doing or wasn't paying attention, because he played Sharpshooter when I had two Shadows and two Ichorids in play, and didn't shoot his own guy before shooting mine. I created a bunch of zombies and he scooped.
Game 2: This game was pretty similar to the first. He had turn one Lackey which found a Warchief and played War Marshal, but I was able to reanimate Spy before he could mass a bunch of goblins. He couldn't find any of his grave hate.
This round showed that a vs. unfamiliar with this deck can make enough errors to punt the match. There were a lot of opportunities to get me but it seems like he was super flustered in the face of so many Shadows, Ichorids, and Bridges. He didn't side correctly, bringing in Tuktuk Scrapper. He didn't respond to Therapies which let me strip him of Stingscourgers and Ringleaders. I know Legacy is a broad format but you've got to have some knowledge of everything if you're going to succeed.
Round 7 against BGW Junk: 2-1
Game 1: I don't remember this match well, except my vs. was a standup guy. He had Dark Confidant and Tarmogoyf hit the field early, and I had no dredgers in my opening. I got beat down within a few turns.
Game 2: I luckily had a quick hand with Phantasmagorian, Probe, and Grave-Troll. I stripped his hand of STP and Goyf, and returned Shadows and Ichorids to beat him low. He found Lingering Souls, but I reanimated Flayer to hit them and their flashbacks on the next upkeep. He was beat down by many zombies and Ichorids.
Game 3: My vs. passed turn one, and I discarded Phantasmagorian. He played a bear on turn two and I discarded EOT. He telegraphed Extraction very hard; I said "upkeep" and he immediately put out Extraction. Luckily I had Street Wraith to save the dredger he targetted and he died to Ichorids and Shadows a couple turns later.
I had a few occasions where my vs. telegraphed his move prior to doing it, and I was able to respond accordingly. I realize that in some cases it's difficult to avoid, but you've got to be more savvy in competitive Magic if you're going to succeed, I think.
Round 8 against Omni-Tell: 2-0
Game 1: My favorite play of the day was here. My vs. played Show and Tell for Emrakul turn 2, and I was able to drop Spy. I got all of my creatures back, getting an extra turn with maindeck Colossus, and beat him down in the following turn.
Game 2: My vs. mulliganned to five and dropped double Leyline of Sanctity. There was no pressure on me and I was able to reanimate Spy turn 3 and reanimate Angel of Despair to hit his only Ancient Tomb.
I played against this opponent the night before and he was obviously upset at being beat by the deck he crushed previously. I don't blame him and he apologized for getting all jeeped up. It happens.
Round 9 against Burn: 2-1
Game 1: I had no dredgers again and I was quickly burned out by a Goblin Guide and some burn spells.
Game 2: Few notes for this game other than stripping Tormod's Crypt from his hand after turn 1 (mistake to sandbag it?) and bringing back a lot of Shadows and Ichorids to win.
Game 3: My vs had a turn 1 Guide against and had a Keldon Marauders to join it. I was burned down with a Flame Rift and attacks until I got to about 6 life. I was able to return Shadows and Ichorids and then played Therapy. My vs. tanked for about a minute before he let it resolve, and I immediately named Fireblast, stripping two from his hand and revealing an Ensnaring Bridge. I stripped Bridge as well, reanimated Chancellor of the Forge a turn later, and got him down to 2 life. He didn't rip a burn spell and that was it.
Here is another result of telegraphing your moves. He ripped a Flame Rift after he lost the Fireblasts, which may very well have won him the game since he played another land after that. It was clearly a tough decision on his part and I was going to name Fireblast anyway, but it was made a lot easier by this move.
So I finished 6-3 for 49th and won $50. Obviously not all that noteworthy, but I'm proud of my finish in this first big tournament in some time. Making the money was my goal and I'm glad I was able to fight through the field to do so. There were more than a few cards I hadn't seen before and had to read, so I'm pleasantly surprised I got as far as I did.
Some notes from my experience:
People kept putting me on the draw, even when they didn't have a turn 1 or 2 win. You can't be that afraid of Unmask on your hand, knock that off.
I saw a good amount of Rest in Peace/Energy Field decks, perhaps a dozen, but I missed playing them all. Whether all of these decks were at the top tables or I just slid under the radar, I'm not sure. Clearly that's a bad matchup and I'm glad I missed them.
Aside from those decks, it seems like a good time for decks employing graveyard strategies. The only graveyard hate played against me all weekend long was Surgical Extraction, which wasn't all that effective, and Scavenging Ooze, which this deck can employ answers in response to. I did have Shoal for my fifth round Ooze, but it was Dazed. My opponents boarded in things like Leyline of Sanctity, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, Relic of Progenitus, Deathrite Shaman (in the main), but they were all quite ineffective.
My sidepile looks like a pile of junk, and that's precisely what I thought of it. I'm not sure what the correct configuration is against nine different deck types, so there should be some more exploration in the weeks following. My weakest card was certainly Unmask; perhaps that's because I didn't have to go for Rest in Peace, but there's certainly something better that could have gone in there.
I heard quite a few derogatory comments about Manaless Dredge and my decision to play it. Stuff like, "Only idiots play Manaless Dredge," "Hollywood isn't here, that deck is terrible," and other things like that. While this deck might not be the best choice to you, I chose to play it and I thought I did rather well considering my newness and the tough matchups I fought through. I think you're pretty pathetic if you have to dismiss another person because they're trying out something that you don't like. I realize that the vast majority of players and especially my opponent are perfectly nice people and behaved maturely, but it's disappointing to encounter that sort of thing. You're an adult; act like it.
I enjoyed my experience at SCG Washington and I'll be sure to play at another one very soon. Thanks to my opponents for being kind, social, and approachable; that's what I'll remember about this experience and it'll get me back into playing mode more than anything else. Congratulations to Bryant Cook for winning the cup; I didn't see you play but I saw most of your opponents in action and they looked quite skilled, so kudos to you for getting to the top.
You may view the Manaless Ichorid (http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?21544-Deck-Manaless-Ichorid) threat in Established decks to follow more of the discussion. Good fortune to all of you; I don't believe in luck, so get good cards in your next tournaments. Greetings RT
I played Manaless Dredge with Balustrade Spy. Here is my list:
4 Golgari Grave-Troll
4 Stinkweed Imp
4 Golgari Thug
4 Shambling Shell
4 Nether Shadow
4 Ichorid
4 Narcomoeba
4 Bridge from Below
4 Phantasmagorian
4 Street Wraith
4 Gitaxian Probe
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Chancellor of the Annex
4 Dread Return
3 Balustrade Spy
1 Flayer of the Hatebound
1 Darksteel Colossus
4 Faerie Macabre
3 Unmask
3 Mindbreak Trap
2 Sickening Shoal
1 Griselbrand
1 Chancellor of the Forge
1 Angel of Despair
There should have been a Blightsteel Colossus instead of Darksteel Colossus in the maindeck, but I failed to acquire one before the tournament. Too bad.
I tried different cards in the sideboard and didn't know what would be best when the tournament began. So I tried a little bit of everything. The weakest card was Unmask, which probably lost me a match early on. Later on I'll experiment with some different things. You can look over on to the thread in Established Decks to investigate the discussion.
I played in the Legacy challenge on Saturday night and went 3-1. I won against Slivers, lost against Dream Halls-Omniscience, and then won against Sneak & Show and Death & Taxes. There was not one gravehate card cast against me in those matches.
Sunday:
Round 1 against Tin Fins: 2-1
Game 1: On the draw, but lost turn 1.
Game 2: Sided in the Faeries, Unmask, Mindbreak Trap. I had Trap in the opening hand, but my vs. played two Duress and two Cabal Therapy to slow me down. I did not dredge for several turns. The turn before he was ready to combo, he Therapied a Faerie away but I drew one off the top. He tried to combo the next turn but the Faerie nixed it. I was able to get to 8 and begin dredging. Nether Shadow was Extracted later on, but I dredged enough Ichorid to get there.
Game 3: I don't have many notes for this game since I didn't cast Therapy early. I played Unmask early on and took a Shallow Grave. He didn't have the other combo parts and never drew them. I beat with Nether Shadow for a while, Bridge was Extracted, but eventually Ichorid showed up and I played Therapy to seal it.
The second and third games went quite long, nearly to time. I credit this to the "resilience" of this deck: when the game goes long, the deck does not get weaker, especially when mass grave removal does not appear. I recovered from setbacks extremely well both post-side games. I had played against this opponent in past tournaments, so he knew what to expect, which made it a bit more difficult.
Round 2 against Elf Combo: 0-2
Game 1: I only had Shambling Shell in the opener so I was very slow to start. On the third turn my vs. went for the combo, but he made errors and was forced to pass the turn. By that time I had some Ichorids and Shadows in the grave and brought them back to attack. My opponent erred by blocking with Elvish Visionaries and returning them to hand with Wirewood Symbiote, all while I had Therapy in the grave. They were binned in the postcombat phase. Unfortunately, I was ready to reanimate Spy but he was not in the graveyard. My vs. had extra Visionaries in the field of play and drew into Craterhoof Behemoth the next turn.
Game 2: I had Annex Chancellor in the opening hand and my vs. ran Deathrite Shaman right into it. Yikes. Then he had turn 2 Bojuka Bog to hit my discarded Phantasmagorian, and then drew into Scavenging Ooze. I could not find Sickening Shoal.
My opponent seemed new to this deck, which might be why I saw him sitting next to me in round 6. Nice guy, he just seemed a bit lost. I wonder if more Contagion would have helped in this match.
Round 3 against UR Delver: 2-0
Game 1: My opponent had a quick Delver and played Lavamancer later on. I had a quick start with Grave-Troll dredging second turn along with Probe to see his hand. I Therapied and took away Lightning Bolt and Snapcaster Mage. He put me down to 13, but I was able to reanimate Spy on my fifth turn and killed him.
Game 2: I sided in Sickening Shoals but never saw them. He played Delver turn 1 and Goblin Guide turn 2. He hit me down to 7 but I had another quick start with Phantasmagorian, dredgers, and Street Wraith. I made a lot of Nether Shadows and zombies and beat him down for the win around turn 4.
Unfortunately for him, his Extractions were cut down to the bottom of the deck. He said he left work at 5am in Richmond and drove to DC for this tournament. Please, don't do unsafe things like this. No tournament is worth the peril you put yourself in when you're driving tired. He was a nice guy though and I hope to play more people like this.
Round 4 against Ad Nauseum: 1-2
Game 1: Unfortunately, I was hit with Tendrils on turn 2. Even Annex Chancellor couldn't stop him.
Game 2: I sided in Trap, Unmask, and Faerie Macabre. Annex Chancellor Dazed a Lotus Petal, he Duressed a Trap, and then I discarded Phantasmagorian. He tried to combo turn 3 after I dredged Shambling Shell, but his Cabal Ritual was met with Faerie, which took him away from threshold. He was dead in the water after that and I returned a bunch of Ichorid and zombies for lethal.
Game 3: He mulliganed and I played Unmask on turn 1 to see land, Duress, Petal, Ponder, Ad Nauseum. I took the Duress because I had Trap in hand, but that was a mistake since he Pondered into Therapy and Duress. It wasn't hard for him after that since Unmask and discard spells kept me from discarding a dredger.
This round, along with other areas, makes me question Unmask. I found that there wasn't really a matchup where I felt comfortable boarding it in. Obviously I need it if I want a chance against Grafdigger's Cage and Rest in Peace, but it seems like those cards are played in blue decks, where Unmask can just be countered and I'm out of luck anyway. We'll have to search for another solution.
Round 5 against RUG Delver: 1-2
Game 1: I was on the play. A turn 1 Delver came out and beat me down to 9, when another Delver and Tarmogoyf came out. I had Thug to dredge but didn't hit anything relevant. I played Probe, then Therapy and took away Snapcaster Mage. I brought back two Shadows, but I couldn't find enough Narcomoebas or a Dread Return and I lost
Game 2: There was another turn 1 Delver when I was on the draw, I didn't have Annex Chancellor. I played Probe turn 1 and saw Brainstorms, Daze, and a Snap Mage. Turn 2 I dredged into Narcomoeba and Therapy. He played Brainstorm in response to Therapy and I nabbed a Daze, thinking I could reanimate a Spy in a turn or two. Luckily, he didn't play anything of relevance and I was able to do so.
Game 3: He found his one Scavenging Ooze in his opening hand and I had a slow hand. A losing game to be sure.
I pride myself on hiding my deck while shuffling if my opponent hasn't seen me playing it. For all that I did though, my opponent spied a flash of Dread Return and something else in pre-match shuffle and said something to the effect of, "So you're playing Manaless Dredge? I'll put you on the play." "Oh, you saw me playing earlier?" "No, I just saw a card while you were shuffling." This seemed to me rather unsporting, but I suppose it's my fault for not shuffling before I got to the table. I thought he could have at least played it off like he saw me playing earlier, but at least he was honest. At least he was a nice guy and revealed what he was playing when I called him on it. Lesson learned.
Round 6 against Vial Goblins: 2-0
Game 1: My vs. went on the play and started with Vial. I had a fast hand with Phantasmagorian and Street Wraith, making some Shadows and zombies early on. Apparently, my opponent didn't know what he was doing or wasn't paying attention, because he played Sharpshooter when I had two Shadows and two Ichorids in play, and didn't shoot his own guy before shooting mine. I created a bunch of zombies and he scooped.
Game 2: This game was pretty similar to the first. He had turn one Lackey which found a Warchief and played War Marshal, but I was able to reanimate Spy before he could mass a bunch of goblins. He couldn't find any of his grave hate.
This round showed that a vs. unfamiliar with this deck can make enough errors to punt the match. There were a lot of opportunities to get me but it seems like he was super flustered in the face of so many Shadows, Ichorids, and Bridges. He didn't side correctly, bringing in Tuktuk Scrapper. He didn't respond to Therapies which let me strip him of Stingscourgers and Ringleaders. I know Legacy is a broad format but you've got to have some knowledge of everything if you're going to succeed.
Round 7 against BGW Junk: 2-1
Game 1: I don't remember this match well, except my vs. was a standup guy. He had Dark Confidant and Tarmogoyf hit the field early, and I had no dredgers in my opening. I got beat down within a few turns.
Game 2: I luckily had a quick hand with Phantasmagorian, Probe, and Grave-Troll. I stripped his hand of STP and Goyf, and returned Shadows and Ichorids to beat him low. He found Lingering Souls, but I reanimated Flayer to hit them and their flashbacks on the next upkeep. He was beat down by many zombies and Ichorids.
Game 3: My vs. passed turn one, and I discarded Phantasmagorian. He played a bear on turn two and I discarded EOT. He telegraphed Extraction very hard; I said "upkeep" and he immediately put out Extraction. Luckily I had Street Wraith to save the dredger he targetted and he died to Ichorids and Shadows a couple turns later.
I had a few occasions where my vs. telegraphed his move prior to doing it, and I was able to respond accordingly. I realize that in some cases it's difficult to avoid, but you've got to be more savvy in competitive Magic if you're going to succeed, I think.
Round 8 against Omni-Tell: 2-0
Game 1: My favorite play of the day was here. My vs. played Show and Tell for Emrakul turn 2, and I was able to drop Spy. I got all of my creatures back, getting an extra turn with maindeck Colossus, and beat him down in the following turn.
Game 2: My vs. mulliganned to five and dropped double Leyline of Sanctity. There was no pressure on me and I was able to reanimate Spy turn 3 and reanimate Angel of Despair to hit his only Ancient Tomb.
I played against this opponent the night before and he was obviously upset at being beat by the deck he crushed previously. I don't blame him and he apologized for getting all jeeped up. It happens.
Round 9 against Burn: 2-1
Game 1: I had no dredgers again and I was quickly burned out by a Goblin Guide and some burn spells.
Game 2: Few notes for this game other than stripping Tormod's Crypt from his hand after turn 1 (mistake to sandbag it?) and bringing back a lot of Shadows and Ichorids to win.
Game 3: My vs had a turn 1 Guide against and had a Keldon Marauders to join it. I was burned down with a Flame Rift and attacks until I got to about 6 life. I was able to return Shadows and Ichorids and then played Therapy. My vs. tanked for about a minute before he let it resolve, and I immediately named Fireblast, stripping two from his hand and revealing an Ensnaring Bridge. I stripped Bridge as well, reanimated Chancellor of the Forge a turn later, and got him down to 2 life. He didn't rip a burn spell and that was it.
Here is another result of telegraphing your moves. He ripped a Flame Rift after he lost the Fireblasts, which may very well have won him the game since he played another land after that. It was clearly a tough decision on his part and I was going to name Fireblast anyway, but it was made a lot easier by this move.
So I finished 6-3 for 49th and won $50. Obviously not all that noteworthy, but I'm proud of my finish in this first big tournament in some time. Making the money was my goal and I'm glad I was able to fight through the field to do so. There were more than a few cards I hadn't seen before and had to read, so I'm pleasantly surprised I got as far as I did.
Some notes from my experience:
People kept putting me on the draw, even when they didn't have a turn 1 or 2 win. You can't be that afraid of Unmask on your hand, knock that off.
I saw a good amount of Rest in Peace/Energy Field decks, perhaps a dozen, but I missed playing them all. Whether all of these decks were at the top tables or I just slid under the radar, I'm not sure. Clearly that's a bad matchup and I'm glad I missed them.
Aside from those decks, it seems like a good time for decks employing graveyard strategies. The only graveyard hate played against me all weekend long was Surgical Extraction, which wasn't all that effective, and Scavenging Ooze, which this deck can employ answers in response to. I did have Shoal for my fifth round Ooze, but it was Dazed. My opponents boarded in things like Leyline of Sanctity, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, Relic of Progenitus, Deathrite Shaman (in the main), but they were all quite ineffective.
My sidepile looks like a pile of junk, and that's precisely what I thought of it. I'm not sure what the correct configuration is against nine different deck types, so there should be some more exploration in the weeks following. My weakest card was certainly Unmask; perhaps that's because I didn't have to go for Rest in Peace, but there's certainly something better that could have gone in there.
I heard quite a few derogatory comments about Manaless Dredge and my decision to play it. Stuff like, "Only idiots play Manaless Dredge," "Hollywood isn't here, that deck is terrible," and other things like that. While this deck might not be the best choice to you, I chose to play it and I thought I did rather well considering my newness and the tough matchups I fought through. I think you're pretty pathetic if you have to dismiss another person because they're trying out something that you don't like. I realize that the vast majority of players and especially my opponent are perfectly nice people and behaved maturely, but it's disappointing to encounter that sort of thing. You're an adult; act like it.
I enjoyed my experience at SCG Washington and I'll be sure to play at another one very soon. Thanks to my opponents for being kind, social, and approachable; that's what I'll remember about this experience and it'll get me back into playing mode more than anything else. Congratulations to Bryant Cook for winning the cup; I didn't see you play but I saw most of your opponents in action and they looked quite skilled, so kudos to you for getting to the top.
You may view the Manaless Ichorid (http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?21544-Deck-Manaless-Ichorid) threat in Established decks to follow more of the discussion. Good fortune to all of you; I don't believe in luck, so get good cards in your next tournaments. Greetings RT